But when she first returned to India, nine years ago, after topping her London fashion college -- she didn't think she would make it. Desi design dominated the fashion world and Rohit Khosla was the only other designer dabbling in western wear. "There was no concept of designer western wear in India. Only Bandra girls wore frocks to church. There were other women who did wear trousers and skirts but they used to pick up their westernwear abroad. I thought there would be no market," says Monisha.

More than a little apprehensive, she decided to bite the bullet -- and started small. She designed, cut and sewed, a collection of 15 outfits which she distributed among her friends. And that's how Monisha's work reached Tarun Tahiliani. He had just started Ensemble and was on the lookout for fresh talent. "I took the clothes back from my friends and put them in the store. They sold out almost as soon as they arrived in the store. Perhaps I was lucky -- it was the month of December and people tend to need more clothes at this time," says Monisha. Nine years later, she is still retailing at Ensemble, the only thing that has changed is that people now buy her clothes around the year.

But even a top designer cannot survive on sales from stores. "I make my bread and butter through export. A shop may ask for 15 items, an export order is for 300 items," she says. Which is why, when Monisha was still a student in London, she started sending feelersto garment companies. On her return to India she set up a full-fledged export business. But instead of being just a supplier, Monisha's value-addition comes by the way of her designer touch. "They send me the fabrics and I have to design according to what is going on internationally," she says. This month, all Monisha is seeing is red. That is blood red, charcoal grey and aubergine -- the hot shades dominating the catwalks of London and Paris.

The other advantage is that she gets to use the fabric they send her. That way, Monisha can use the latest materials for the local market as well. Her collections tend to have a lot of knits and lycra as she believes these are the fabrics of the '90s. "Cotton knits with fabric in them are so easy to wash and wear. The lycra means that the garments always stays in shape, even straight after washing," says Monisha. And the shape is what she concentrates on. Till today, she does all the paper-cutting herself. "It is all about finish and when you are sending clothesabroad, you need very high quality control," says the designer.

And Monisha is glad that she is no longer the only designer who concentrates on western wear. "When there is competition you tend to work harder," she says. But she still doesn't think that a designer can only design western wear. "There is not a big enough market for that. You have to either get into export or design Indian clothes too," she says. That has its own downside. Bored housewives with a few tailors are flooding the ethnic wear market with what they call "designer" salwars. And people are lapping it up. To set herself apart, Monisha identifies herself as, "A garment manufacturer and not a fashion designer".